City of Heroes and Villains is a great concept. What comic book fan wouldn't want to custom create their own hero or villain whose powers and skills bear a passing resemblance to those created by Marvel and DC. This was so apparent that Marvel even filed a lawsuit against the creators, but thankfully it was unsuccessful and they went back to making some excellent (Spider-Man, X-Men) and not so excellent (Fantastic Four) films while we were left to enjoy this amazing MMORPG.

Having never played a game of this type before - not even Warcraft - (I know, call myself a gamer, I should hang my head in shame, etc.) it was a little like walking into a whole new world, a dazzling place I never knew, but now from way up here… sorry, started channelling Aladdin for a moment there! Anyway, the great thing about this is that I wouldn't end up writing a review full of comparison comments that might bring my marks down. It is true that if you do own the previous version then City of Heroes Good vs Evil Combined Edition Issue 12: Midnight Hour [Blimey, what a mouthful! Ed.] is nothing more than a few weeks of gameplay to add to the already expansive game, but to a newcomer it will be immense to take in on first play.

Once you've set up and registered your account online you can start playing...

After you choose your path, either Hero or Villain and create your character. Unlike some games (such as the WWE series) you can't actually create a hero who exists (so no Wolverine, Superman or Batman etc.), but a character all dressed in black and called 'Bats' seems to be fine. For those who are curious, if you do actually create a perfect Wolverine and try to place him in the game, the administrators will not be happy and swiftly remove your creation, so it's not worth the hassle or time spent, because it is no joke when I say that you could spend a lifetime creating your character from the look, to primary and secondary weapons, avatars, name and you can even write them a back story if you wish.

Once you've done all that you can start playing...

After you've picked your origin from the five available (Natural, Magic, Science, Mutation and Technology). As you can imagine, this follows the typical superhero formula with technology superheroes being like Batman or Iron Man whereas mutation is more akin to the X-Men or Hulk. The choice you make determines what type of enhancements (attribute boosts) you can use. Once that's decided, you then have to pick your basic archetype, which again affects your fighting styles, powers and vulnerabilities in battle. Blasters are great for dealing long-ranged damage, Controllers have almost a psi-ability that prevents the enemy from moving or attacking, Defenders have an odd mix of attack and support as you can use them to improve the strength powers of your allies, Scrappers are fighters who like nothing better than taking on hordes of enemy and Tankers can take the most damage and seem to be able to dish it out in kind. So choose wisely, because with great power comes... well, you know the drill.

Once you've done all that you can start playing...

After you've picked your server, which is just a small disruption and not as complex as it sounds, mainly due to the fact that there are only two European English language servers.

Once you've done all that you can start playing...

Yes, really! As you can tell, the initial set up is lengthy process, due mainly to all the critical decisions you have to make in creating and defining your avatar, but thankfully you only have to do most of this once and after that it's fairly simple to get into the game itself.

For someone who's used to playing console games, such as myself, the commands and controls take a little getting used to, but thankfully they are easy enough to pick up and even if at times you may be convinced that the game was designed for someone with three hands, you'll have no problem after a few minutes. The game starts with a helpful tutorial that is advisable to go through, as it is very thorough and will clear up most of the issues you could potentially encounter later on. Attack commands are mapped to the number keys, opponent targeting to the tab key and the mouse is used (as it should be) for selecting a target or highlighting an object. Movement is smooth and, depending on your character, running, jumping and flying isn't hampered with complicated button combinations. You then just carry on ploughing through the missions, walking around the environment, beating up villains (or heroes), collecting bonuses, saving civilians and generally going about your daily life as a superbeing.

Which brings me to my general negative issue with this game: once you've decided all of the above and started, the missions are very obscure and involve a mixture of saving civilians, finding items or other rudimentary tasks. Along with this, you are assigned a hero (or villain!) who acts as your Mentor, guiding you and answering all your questions, giving advice and also allowing you to acquire bonuses that increase your power capabilities. This is nothing new and whether you improve your strength, healing abilities or flight it won't actually have much impact until you have been playing for some time and improved your gaming level, which increases as you complete tasks. One element that should be great, but sadly isn't, is the ability to create or join hero (or villain) groups like the X-Men or Justice League (but not with those names or lawsuits would ensue again!) However, these groups don't actually change how you play the game and if you aren't the leader then whilst the others are off rescuing damsels and saving the city from peril, you might find yourself carrying out all the grunt work again and again and again and again.

The problem is that each mission, no matter how the developers might want to gloss it over, is the same. You have to reach an area and there are enemies in the way who you then have to destroy or you have to pick up an item and there are enemies in the way who you then have to destroy or you must meet a character and there are enemies… well, you get the idea. Now, as fun as the fighting is (and it is), after a few hours you might become a little restless that you spent all this time and money setting up what is essentially just a fancy looking, complicated, side scrolling beat 'em up.

The fact that you have to pay £7.49 a month to keep playing makes the purchase of this game an important financial decision, as you are paying almost £90 a year. It's standard practice for most MMORPGs but it has to be taken into consideration. It is worth it, but if you're not willing to keep up the payments then you need to think twice before diving into the City of Heroes. Unlike most games there are frequent updates, or issues, of this game, which are free and extend the longevity of the game immensely. Issue Twelve: Midnight Hour is the typical example of small tweaks, new powers and the introduction of the Midnight Squad, a time-travel group that would be a great unique element, except for the fact that the game already had a time-travel group.

Of course, the ace in the hole to combat all this is the 'villains' aspect of the game. How many superhero films have you watched and just thought, I wonder what would happen if Lex Luthor actually won? Well, wonder no more, as after beating all those bad guys as a hero it's payback time! I'd be lying if I said that this part of the game is radically different; it's essentially the same game, going through the same creation process with slightly different archetypes, objectives and visually everything looks slightly drab, as their city, Rogue Isles, is covered with foreboding, looming medieval style buildings. Instead of saving the people you get to attack them, destroy buildings, cause damage and generally bring in the chaos. This is sadly far much more fun than playing as a hero - I'm not sure what that says about me, but there you have it.

Graphically the game is adequate, but many of the characters lack a lot of definition and often look pixelated (though this could be down to poor design on the creator's part). The environments are bright and interesting enough, with much variation between each area; when you consider that the game is more or less taking place within the small area of Paragon City or Rogue Isles (essentially Rhode Island), this is a great achievement. However, many areas do seem to consist of a whole lot of nothing; maybe if there was some way that areas could be updated or created this could be rectified (Hero Gardeners or Villain Construction Workers? Well it worked in Mystery Men!). The game is packed with tonnes of voices, speech, music and general ambiance. Even if you just have the game on in the background it sounds like you are watching a classic action film at times. It's a shame you can't download any of the tracks, as some of the sounds and phrases would make great text tones: "Hey you. I gots a message for ya!" is my favourite so far, but I still can't find the character who said it and I've spent most of my time recently trying to track him down so I can record it! Luckily, if this does happen, the online forum and online presence of this game is so great that you can ask even the most obscure question and someone, somewhere, is bound to have an answer for you.

The online aspects like this, which are a common feature of most MMORPGs, are fantastic, although you can at times get lost in a Wikipedia-style web of looking at one thing, then another, then another, until you find yourself miles away from your original query, somehow having lost an hour or two of your time. This is a clear sign, not only of how fun the game is, but how much fun it is to play with others and discuss. I know this is stepping into the Geek Zone, but I haven't been there in so long that it's good to put my feet up and immerse myself in a game that not only allows me to, but actively encourages and supports me.

City of Heroes Good Vs Evil Combined Edition Issue Twelve: Midnight Hour is apparently not a huge improvement over the previous issue but if you're already subscribed and playing then it's free anyway, so what are you doing reading this? If you're yet to take your first step into the online MMORPG world of superheroes and supervillains then you will be impressed with just how much there is on offer. Despite the repetition you could easily find yourself playing for months on end, so if you've ever craved the chance to create your own hero (or villain) and take him or her out to save (or ruin) the day then you'd be well advised to get your tights ready and your cape ironed, because the city of heroes and villains needs you!

Reviewed by David Simpson for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).